Minuartia groenlandica is morphologically very similar to M. glabra (Michaux) Mattfeld; the two are clearly separable by habit, phenology, and elevation at the southern end of the range of M. groenlandica (R. E. Weaver 1970).

E. Hultén (1964) confirmed the report of Minuartia groenlandica from a mountain in southern Brazil (Morro de Igreja, Santa Catarina). This remains the only report of Minuartia in South America.